I bought the October Food Network Magazine on a whim. I have since purchased the November one and am considering subscribing. I usually dislike cooking magazines. I find many of them pretentious, since they are full of recipes that require exotic ingredients and a whole day to prepare. Others are too focused on getting dinner to the table in less than half an hour, even if that means heavy reliance on pre-packaged, brand-name ingredients. While both types of recipes have their time and place, I don’t want magazines devoted to only one or the other. This is why I like Food Network’s brand of magazine. It has a nice mix of quick and complicated recipes.
Another big plus for this magazine – it has a picture of every recipe. This is important to me since I like to see how a recipe is supposed to look when it’s done. I’ve also been known to choose recipes based solely on how pretty they are. Colorful enchiladas? I’m in.
Chicken & Cheese Enchiladas
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
1 small red onion, halved
1 1/2 lbs. tomatillos, husked & rinsed
2 serrano chiles, stemmed & seeded
1/2 c. chicken broth
3 c. shredded chicken
1 1/2 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1/3 c. fresh cilantro
2 tbsp. olive oil, plus extra
8 corn tortillas
pinch of sugar
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste
Directions
1. Preheat broiler. Slice half of the onion into thin rings. Place the other half of the onion, tomatillos and peppers on a baking sheet and broil until vegetables are brown, approximately 7-10 minutes. Puree vegetables with broth. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and sugar.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, combine shredded chicken with 2 cups of cheese.
3. Warm tortillas to soften them. Spoon some chicken mixture and cilantro into each tortilla. Roll tortillas and place them in a 9×13 baking dish. Broil until crisp and brown, approximately 3 minutes.
4. Coat enchiladas with tomatillo sauce and remaining 1/2 cup of cheese. Broil until cheese is brown, approximately 3-5 minutes.
5. Garnish with onion rings and cilantro.
My thoughts:
1. I thought the tomatillo sauce needed something extra, so I added some garlic powder. I almost always make minor changes to recipes the first time I make them. The exception to this rule is baked goods.
2. One of my favorite things about this recipe is that, once it was done, it looked almost exactly like the picture.
Recipe Source: Adapted from Food Network Magazine, October 2009
